TAMPA, Fla. — The two Hillsborough County cases of coronavirus are closely related. 

Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday that the third patient was reportedly sister of a 29-year-old Hillsborough County woman whose infection has already been confirmed and who had recently traveled to northern Italy — one of the areas identified for restricted travel by federal authorities.

lberto Moscoso, a spokesman for the Florida Health Department, said the older woman had been traveling with her 22-year-old sister, a resident of California. He said the sisters were recovering in the one of the women’s home in the Tampa Bay area and were being closely monitored by health officials, he said.

Officials have not said if the 22-year-old woman also traveled through Tampa Interntational Airport, as her sister did.  

A third woman — identified by the governor as a roommate of one of the infected women — was under self-isolation and was being closely monitored, Florida health officials said, but had not shown any symptoms.

Also, the other confirmed case is a man in his 60s from Sarasota who had not been in any of the countries currently identified for restricted travel by federal authorities.

While the state is now capable of doing its own testing, health officials rely on the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta to confirm its results.

DeSantis has said there will likely be more cases. 

Right now, 24 state coronavirus tests have come back negative and 16 more people were awaiting test results. 

There were another almost 250 under "public health monitoring," which health officials defined as people under health official watch because they had contact with someone who tested positive, as well as people who have returned from China in the past 14 days.

Doctors continue to advise the public that if you develop a fever or a cough, don't run to the hospital. They say stay home and self-quarantine, then start with a call to the doctor. 

"When you call your primary care offices, they're going to take the time to ask the questions to try to determine is this patient at a point where they need hospitalization? Or can we manage them at home?' " said Dr. Jack Rodman, a Primary Care Doctor. "And if it's staying home its just about giving them the tools of what supportive care is like managing the fever and staying hydrated." 

Once symptoms start, the virus can last anywhere from three to five days. 

Meanwhile, in Sarasota, a mother and son were quarantined because of possible exposure to the novel coronavirus, according to a post shared on Facebook by the Sarasota Military Academy, where the boy attends school.

“One of our students and his mother are currently quarantined as a precautionary measure due to the mother’s contact with a patient at Sarasota Doctors Hospital in her professional role,” the post said.

Vice President Mike Pence had visited the school last Friday and shook hands with other cadets after attending a fundraiser for U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan. 

The spreading virus has placed health officials across the U.S. on high alert.

Worldwide, more than 92,000 people have been infected, with the number of deaths now exceeding 3,100 people. In the United States, more than 100 cases have been confirmed — with nine deaths, all in the state of Washington.

Florida officials urged residents to take common sense precautions, such as washing hands frequently for at least 20 seconds and to avoid contact with people who are sick.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.